What is Taskbar in Windows? And How to Use it?

What is Taskbar in Windows?

Taskbar is an essential part of the Windows operating system. It's a toolbar at the bottom of the screen and provides quick access to your most-used features and applications. In this post, we'll discuss the taskbar and how to customize it on your Windows PC. We'll also cover some of the most popular taskbar extensions available. 

How to use taskbar?

Simply, you can pin and unpin an app to the taskbar. 
Besides showing the running apps, taskbar can play as a quick access center for the most frequently used applications. You can pin an app to taskbar by directly dragging the app icon into the taskbar zone or adding by the following way: 

• Search the target app in the Search box placed on the taskbar
• Right-click the app
• Choose "Pin to taskbar" 

To unpin apps from the taskbar, right-click the app and click "Unpin from taskbar", after which the apps disappear. 

There is more to do with taskbar settings. Size customization, including app icon size customization, color change, background replacement, and many other adjustments, can all be done here. So, how to open taskbar settings? Check the simple steps below: 

• Move the mouse to an empty space on the taskbar
• Right-click 
• Choose "Taskbar settings"

It's quite simple to set the taskbar with personal habits or preferences. And there are actually some taskbar extensions that can offer further help in the customization of this. 

Taskbar plays an essential role in daily operations for quick entrance to apps. Many people want to make it more personalized. There are many ways to customize and extend the taskbar to suit your needs better. One of the most popular customization options is to install taskbar extensions. Taskbarx and Startisback are typical programs for such needs. They are small tools to customize taskbar settings and can help change the style, location, etc. Windows 11 places the app icons in the middle, and such software can quickly help move the icons to the left as other Windows versions do. 

Taskbar VS system tray in Windows

What is system tray? What's the difference between taskbar and system tray? 

The system tray, also called the systray, is located in the top-right corner of the screen and contains icons for various system settings and notifications. These icons can represent new email messages, upcoming calendar events, or network status. Some icons may also provide shortcuts to frequently used settings or actions. 

As explained in the upper part of this article, taskbar is a horizontal bar located at the bottom of the screen, helping launch and manage applications. You can also use it to access system settings and view notifications. On the other hand, the system tray mainly works to access system settings and view notifications. 

Taskbar is a great tool to place quick access to the often applied software and improve efficiency and can be adjusted to comply with personal style via taskbar setting or some third-party software. It's different from system tray in location and function, though there are function overlaps. Make full use of it!